January 9 - Card Walker

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On this day, in 1916, Esmond Cardon Walker was born in Rexburg, Idaho. Card first arrived in the Los Angeles area at the age of 8 and, in 1934, began life as a freshman at UCLA. When he graduated four years later, he landed at job at the Walt Disney Studios in the mailroom. That’s right, folks. Card’s story is a classic tale of one man’s rise from the proverbial lowly entry position to the vaunted corner office. Lucky for us, it’s generally reported that he was an all-around good guy.

Card’s first job with the company was affectionately known as a ‘traffic boy.’ He spent his days moving drawings around the studio between the different departments, from an animator’s desk to Ink and Paint to the Camera Department and so on. From there Card moved up into the Camera Department and then the Story Department. At that point, in 1941, his career was interrupted, like so many other careers, by the start of World War II.

Card stepped up and fulfilled his patriotic duty, joining the United States Navy. He was eventually assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Bunker Hill where he served as a flight deck officer from 1943-1945. Card would fight in eight major battles in the Pacific Theater of the war, survive the deadly attacks (the only original flight deck officer on the Bunker Hill to do so) and, in the end, return home to his place at Disney.

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After the war, Card continued to both steadily rise within the company and gain an almost encyclopedic knowledge of it. At one point he became a unit manager in the Shorts Department and by 1956 he claimed the title of Vice President of Advertising and Sales. His vast knowledge about everything going on in the studio made him invaluable to Walt and the two enjoyed a close friendship. In 1960, Card was elected to the Board of Directors for the Studio for the first time. He would remain a member of that body for the next four decades.

When Walt died in 1966, Roy O. Disney became the company’s President and Card became the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. Card was instrumental in helping Roy bring his brother’s final dream, Walt Disney World, to  life. With Roy’s passing in 1971, Card moved up to company President, serving as second in command under Donn Tatum, the company’s first CEO whose last name was something other than Disney.

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As time went on and Donn relinquished his titles one by one, they all went to Card. In 1976, Donn stopped being CEO, but stayed on a Chairman of the Board. Card remained President and added the position of CEO. When Don fully retired in 1980, Card became Chairman of the Board as well as CEO. Card retired from the CEO position in February of 1983 and retired as Chairman in May of the same year. He stayed on with the company as a consultant for several more years and ended his run as a member of the board in 2000.

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After 45 years of steady active leadership, Card left behind a mixed legacy. On the plus side, he made sure Walt Disney World happened (something I can never be thankful enough for), he expanded Disney theme parks into international waters with the opening of Tokyo Disneyland and he got the company into the cable business with the launch of The Disney Channel. He was also the driving force behind EPCOT Center, doubling the number of parks at the Florida Project. Which all sounds great until you flip the coin and look at the negative side.

Creativity was never Card’s strong suit. As Disney historian Jim Hill once noted, throughout the Seventies, when filmmakers who’d grown up on Disney fare were making pictures like Jaws and Star Wars, the company under Card’s leadership was churning out movies like Herbie Goes Bananas and Gus. While those pictures aren’t inherently bad, they are clearly out of place for their times. Card spent much of his time as President and CEO asking the age old question ‘What would Walt do?’ without realizing that the answer was innovate, take risks and constantly push the envelope of what entertainment could be. By trying to stay family friendly in a mid-Sixties kind of way during the Seventies and early Eighties, Card nearly destroyed the very company he loved. As Disney’s fortunes declined and its assets remained lovingly wrapped up in storage, the vultures began to circle. Card managed to retire before the crisis came to a head and his successor, Ron Miller, gets most of the shame for being removed from office to make way for Michael Eisner, but it was Card’s decisions that brought the company to the brink.

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In the end, I think Card comes out on top, if only because things turned out okay. While the creative side of Disney suffered under his leadership, the business side was blessed with firm foundations. Epcot, Tokyo Disneyland and the Disney Channel were all projects that benefited the company immensely in the long term and were executed very well. Card’s chief strengths were dual and embodied in a story from Epcot’s opening. He was asked why the company had named their new park such a cumbersome, odd sounding name.  His response was simple: it was inspired by Walt and he was confident people would get used to it. This dedication to legacy and sure, steadfast optimism about the future are what earned Card the honor of official Disney Legend in 1993.

Card passed away from congestive heart failure at his home in La Canada Flintridge, California on November 28, 2005. He was 89.